


Aftermath

by enemytolover



Category: Outer Banks (TV)
Genre: Abusive Parents, Angst, Best Friends, F/M, Friends to Enemies, Friends to Lovers, Help, Hurt/Comfort, I Don't Even Know, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Love Triangles, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:07:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,113
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23864995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enemytolover/pseuds/enemytolover
Summary: A JJ and Kiara centered version of what I think would happen in season 2 of Outer Banks that picks up immediately after the events of 1x10. John B and Sarah are presumed dead. The rest of the pogues are mourning.
Relationships: JJ & Kiara & Pope (Outer Banks), JJ & Kiara (Outer Banks), John B. Routledge/Everyone, Kiara & Pope (Outer Banks), Sarah Cameron/John B. Routledge
Comments: 8
Kudos: 115





	Aftermath

**Author's Note:**

> disclaimer: the characters and universe belong to Netflix! I'm just a fan.
> 
> Hi! This is my first time posting on here so I hope I did everything right. JJ and Kiara are definitely a complicated slow burn so this wasn't gonna just be a one-shot but it depends on you guys I guess. If you want more, let me know! You can leave feedback here or tweet me it on twitter (@enemytolover)! I hope you enjoy :) this takes place like immediately after the events of 1x10. 
> 
> For Mathi.

The salty air that was normally of comfort to Kiara traitorously burned her lungs as she inhaled. Sheer exhaustion gripped her, but she dared not move. Through the blurriness of tears and sleeplessness, her eyes stayed trained on the horizon waiting in some sort of hopeless desperation for any sign of her best friend.

The events of the last 48 hours swam obscurely on the surface of her mind. It all felt so far away. The police chasing them. Her mom begging her not to go. Pope almost killing Rafe... Even kissing Pope felt miles away like it wasn’t even her. _I wonder how far away John B is?_ The thought flickered through her head. Like the tide, her mind pushed and pulled between hoping John B and Sarah had made it out and hoping they would just drift back home.

It was dawn now. The sun rose lazily over the water, casting vibrant blues and pinks into the newly cleared sky. A few yards back sat Kiara’s mom, parked in her car, asleep after waiting for hours for her daughter. Kiara had refused to leave the point. Pope’s parents had dragged him home, still sobbing. But JJ sat dutifully to her right, staring silently at the horizon that had taken their best friend. There were no words exchanged between the two of them, yet somehow his presence was soothing. A reminder that she hadn’t lost everything.

A couple of boats sailed around the cut, snapping both Kiara and JJ out of their bleak trance. It was the coast guard heading out to look for the wreckage of the Phantom. JJ cursed lightly under his breath and stood up.

“Fucking hell, Kie, this is pointless!” JJ angrily lobbed a rock out at the water.

“JJ, don’t...” Kiara’s voice was quiet as she watched the ripples from the sinking rock.

JJ let out a short laugh. “He’s never coming back.” His eyes drifted back out to the horizon as he spoke.

Anger flushed through Kiara’s body and she stood up abruptly. “What? You think he’s dead too?” It was a question, but she yelled it like an accusation. JJ stood silently for a moment.

Kiara searched his eyes hoping to find any sort of hope. As quickly as the anger had come, it fell away. Kiara turned back to the ocean. “He can’t be dead, JJ. He can’t,” she said lowly.

He watched her sadly. Her eyes were reddened and flagged with dark circles, much like his own. He wasn’t sure if it was his own hurt or hers but, the faint urge to reach out and hug her tugged in his chest. When the muted hum of another coast guard cruiser passing by filled the silence, it was Kiara who closed the distance between them once again. She tucked her head against his chest and let out a muffled sob. Reflexively, JJ tightened his arms around her, resting his chin on the top of her head.

Her sobs were dry, she had cried too much already. She couldn’t remember the last time she ate or drank and frankly, the thought of food just made her nauseous. Eventually, she quieted down to just a small few shudders. Somewhere above where her head was laid against his chest JJ mumbled, “We’re gonna be okay, Kie.”

Kiara looked up and reluctantly took a half step back. The thought that somehow JJ holding her felt more real than anything else that had just happened, jarred through her. Tucking her hair behind her ear nervously, she nodded. She really hoped they’d be okay. Their fates still loomed over their heads, not knowing if they would get in trouble for helping John B escape. Truthfully, that was the least of Kiara’s worries. Her parents had money; they could get her out of it. But JJ? And Pope? They worried her. JJ already had a charge, for sinking Topper’s boat. A charge that he bravely took on Pope’s behalf. Lamely, Kiara wished that people knew how good JJ really was.

“Are you sure?” The question was childlike. She knew JJ couldn’t really answer it, but she wanted to hear his false assurances anyway.

“I mean, I’ve still got you, don’t I? So that’s a good sign.” He gave her a halfhearted smile. “We should get some sleep. Or some food. Probably both.”

“Sleep sounds like a foreign concept to me.” Kiara couldn’t help but smile back and let out a small laugh that sounded strange to her own ears. “Speaking of sleep, you’re not going…,” She trailed off. The images of JJ’s bruised torso on a highlight reel in her mind. “…home, are you?”

JJ rubbed at the back of his neck uncomfortably. “Like it or not he’s still my dad, Kie.”

Kiara’s stomach lurched. No man who did that to his son was a father of any kind. Maybe it’s because the loss of one friend made her overprotective but the idea of JJ going back to his house and receiving more bruises terrified her. What if she lost JJ too?

She opened her mouth to argue or plead, she wasn’t sure which, when her mother’s voice came calling from the car. “Kiara! C’mon let’s get you home.”

A desperate thought appeared in her mind, but her mother would never let a boy, let alone a pogue, stay under her roof. Instead, “Go to John B’s.” Kiara pinned JJ’s mouth shut with her stare. It wasn’t a suggestion. “Please JJ, just stay at John B’s.”

It was selfish, really, but she needed a few hours with as much peace as possible to catch up on some well-needed sleep. And staying at John B’s was something fairly normal. If JJ went home, she’d be a nervous wreck. Which was strange, because JJ’s father being an asshole was something that they’d all known for a long time. But apparently, she needed something to fixate on after all the stress and danger of the past couple of days.

“Alright, whatever.” JJ sighed. “Just go get some sleep, those dark circles aren’t flattering.”

Normally, Kiara would’ve glared at him, rolled her eyes maybe, or even given him a little shove for a comment like that but instead, she wanted to hug him again. He was trying so hard to make things seem ordinary when they most definitely were not.

From behind them, Kiara’s mom called again. She let out an exasperated breath and placed a kiss on JJ’s cheek. “Thank you.”

As she walked away and the heat of her lips faded, JJ couldn’t help but remember when Kiara had kissed John B on the cheek, and he had wished it was him.


End file.
